St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-01-30
GEoReEtseT IN MINNESOTA.
A Minneapolis Voter COmmends
Representative Lucas and Says
Jan. %, 1887.

a
Representative Lucas and Says
EGO &head.s'
To the Editor of the Globe:
Under the head of "Georgeism in Mime
Sofa morning paper of Friday takes up the
Lucas memorial''-that is, the law proposed
by cur representative, Lucas, relating to tie
ownership of coal lands. 1t refers to the
astonishing fact that this ''socalled me-
mortal has been before the legislature only
TO receive euconiums and TO become a sub
iect for great and swelling OratiOnS upon the
iniQuity of monopolieS IN general" The edi-
tor was so astoniShed that he forgot his IMAM
ners, and commenced the article with
the polite assertion There appears
TO be a deal Of loose and careless
thinking in the present legislature
"GeorgeiSm!' That is term of dreadful
import. so the paper evidently suppoSeS. 1t
is Henry George that has given occasion for
this new word. and we do wonder how he will
feel when he learns that he has Sinned
i'll this ominous way. Will he, can he, sur
vivel''
Our Mr.. Lucas has, according to the paper,
made himself responsible for Introducing
"Georgeism" into the legislature He says
the people need fuel; that the coal monopo-
lies and the railroads united have
put it out of the power of numbers
of our poorer people TO buy it, and he pro-
poses that government shall assert its right
of eminent domain, take possession of the
mines (Of course with compensation to the
owners and thus save mutitudes from suf-
1ering and death. This frightens the editor
and he proceeds to show that Mr.. Lucas must
favor taking possession OF all the lands in the
country, also.
This is a non seQuitur. The proposition to
take possession OF the coal mines with COM
penSation) is no more radical than the taking
of private lands for public purposes, for
railway tracks or for any great public OBJ
ject The only question is in regard to the
SitNrf,r v/Nf1 oio IL
generally agreed that the government should
allow individuals to manage their own busi-
ness according to thei" own pleasure. 1t is
universally agreed that the government has
the right to take life, cOnfiscate property, pay
for il i I'd il, and generally to do all
things that may seem to it right and proper
when the public welfare is a stake. The
paper observes: ''f there ought TO be no
private ownership of coal mines. neither
should there be of water power rights or of
salt works, or of mines of iron or copper, or,
in the last analysis Of land ITSELF" This Is
the wrong sort of doctrine for the press to
preach, if it is really opposed to Henry
Georges land theory. Take the salt works
illustration. Let few men obtain contrO! of
all the salt works and mines; let them close
those works and mines and say to the people,
.'You must wait year or two for sat''-how
quick and decisive would be the response
The mines would be opened in day, and all
the people would say amen. Convince the
mediate use as wood and coal and they would
all be "Georgests' something similar.
The TACT that coal, salt and land are not used
ss private property to the eXtln of abso-
luteIy deprivng the people of the right and
ability to use them, is the only reason why
they are not all taken possession of by GOV
ernment So long as the proprietors of these
God-given things are not mad-so long as
they are merely content to rob the people by
nigh prices and high rents-they mag he
endured. But let them declare that they
close their mines as well as their hearts, and
allow the people to suffer, and then see the
result 1t would take millions of such anti
Georgeism editorials to shake the deter
r,inatiou of one single citizen of good
common sense and human feeling
But the monopolists are substantially mad,
and herein is salvation Mrs. Elizabeth Bar
rett Browning, after mentioning several in
stances in which such despots as the Bona
partes were mad inst i'll the nick OF time, -
anplied her illustrations to the contest then
Going on in this country, and exclaimed,
..T,hank God. the Shareholders were mad Just
in the nick of time So with the coal mo-
nonolists and their friends-they are all mad,
mr. rapidly becoming so. Go on, Mr.. Lucas;
get YOUR memorial to congress through the
legislature, and we will remember you at the
,,olIs Go AHEAD.
minneapolis, Jan. 29.